


What They Can't Live Without

by lerayon



Category: Pitch (TV 2016)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, News Media
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-13
Updated: 2020-02-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:22:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22689193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lerayon/pseuds/lerayon
Summary: Mike and Ginny appear in New York Magazine's The Strategist. For Pitch Secret Admirers 2020.
Relationships: Ginny Baker/Mike Lawson
Comments: 9
Kudos: 100
Collections: Pitch Valentine's Gift Exchange 2020





	What They Can't Live Without

**Author's Note:**

  * For [badritual](https://archiveofourown.org/users/badritual/gifts).



> Inspired by The Strategist's Celebrity Shopping column.

_NY Magazine_ had approached Amelia with the idea of featuring Ginny (and by extension, Mike) in one of a series of online couples pieces for February. The ballplayers had a firm policy against stories that focused on their relationship, but were intrigued by the pitches for The Grub Street Diet and the Strategist. They both loved food, and Mike liked to procrastinate by reading online gift guides. (He was supposed to be working on a memoir.) Ultimately, the Strategist’s What I Can’t Live Without won out. It required the least amount of commitment and, since it could be written in their words, they could control the content.

To make the whole exercise more fun, it was agreed that Mike would select a list of things Ginny couldn’t live without and vice versa. The couple further decided that they wouldn’t consult, preferring to wait until the piece published to learn what the other had written. Ginny’s only rule was that they couldn’t reveal anything too personal or intimate. For that reason, she didn’t include the aftershave brand Mike used because of his father. Mike left out the lavender oil he poured when he ran baths for Ginny after she’d had a rough day.

In the end the whole thing turned out pretty good. Of course, the team had new fodder for some gentle ribbing about Mike and Ginny’s obsessions, but both of them had fun contemplating a few amusing endorsement offers.

\--

**What MLB Players Ginny Baker and Mike Lawson Can’t Live Without**

By Mike Lawson and Ginny Baker

_If you’re like us, you’ve probably wondered what famous people add to their carts. Not the Eames chair and Hermes scarf, but the lip gloss and water bottle. In celebration of spring training (and Valentine’s Day!) we asked Ginny Baker and Mike Lawson, MLB’s First Couple, to tell us about the cheat day snacks and equipment bag essentials their partner can’t live without._

**GINNY BAKER**

**Polar Extreme Thermal Socks**

My girl’s a southerner who’s lived her adult life in Texas and California. She hates to be cold, and really hates it when her feet are cold. These socks are her go-to.

**Rishi Yuzo Peach Green Tea**

Ginny discovered this tea a few years ago on a long away series. They served it at one of the hotels, and I’m pretty sure she hoarded a dozen bags to take with her before the team moved onto the next stop. (She probably charmed the room service staff.) Anyway, it’s her favorite tea, and she raved about it the entire time she was away. I made sure to have several boxes waiting for her when she got home. It’s one of only a few things we have on auto-delivery.

**Burt’s Bees Lip Balm**

Our house is littered with these. Ginny keeps them in her bedside table, in the junk drawer in the kitchen. There are two in the mail tray right now, probably from where she emptied her pockets after her last run. And I bet she has at least three more in her gym bag. She says there’s nothing worse than having to dig for chapstick when you need it, so I guess she’s onto something with this method. There’s always one within reach.

**Black Forest Organic Gummy Bears**

I should have stock in these. Every family we know with small kids buys giant boxes of the snack pouches in bulk, which is how Ginny got turned onto them. And since it’s not a good look to pilfer snacks from children, we finally broke down and started buying them ourselves. Unless you’re a responsible parent doling them out in sensible quantities, the snack pouches are a sucker’s bet. We buy the 8 oz. bags and Ginny tries not to blow through them too quickly.

**Supergoop! PLAY Everyday Lotion SPF 50**

Ginny swears by this and wears it every day. I’ve tried it, and it’s pretty good. It goes on light and you don’t feel like you have to reapply throughout the day.

**_Launch Pad_ ** **print by Alma Thomas**

This is the first piece of art Ginny and I bought together. It’s just a print – the original hangs in the Smithsonian in DC – but we both fell in love with it. Well, Ginny fell in love with the painting, and I fell in love with the look on her face as she took it in for the first time. It hangs in our dining room, and Ginny looks at it every day.

**Nike x GB Tights**

This is a total plug but I don’t care. Ginny’s always loved her partnership with Nike, and was really excited to collaborate with them on her own collection. She worked so hard on this project, and I’m really proud of her. Her closet’s been full of Nike gear for years, and now it’s cool that her name is on some of it.

**iPhone 11 Pro**

The only time Ginny’s without her phone is during game time and when we go on vacation.

**Black Hair Ties**

Like the lip balm, these are all over our house. If there’s not one in Gin’s hair, there’s one around her wrist.

**Kitchen Aid Pro Line Bowl-Lift Stand Mixer**

Gin doesn’t like to receive extravagant gifts, but loves to give them. It’s a love language thing. I pretty much let the sales guy talk me into a larger more expensive model, but this is the one time Ginny didn’t say a word about the expense. She’s a terrible cook, but took up baking last year. In the off-season, she has this thing going several times a week. Her latest project is macarons.

**MIKE LAWSON**

**Ray-Ban Wayfarers**

Mike has like three pairs of these. He says that they - like him - are a classic, and that a person can never have too many Mike Lawsons or pairs of Ray-Bans. I think the real reason behind the multiple pairs is that he keeps losing and finding them.

**Flannel shirts**

Mike’s go-to casualwear. His closet is full of them and every single one is somehow aged to the perfect softness.

**Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups**

He won’t eat the minis – says the chocolate to peanut butter ratio is off. But the regular cups were his cheat day treat for years and years. There are always half a dozen or so in the freezer.

**Frette Hotel Classic Sheets**

These are my fault. Bedding is like a weird hobby of Mike’s. He has a complicated ranking system for all kinds of sheets, and pays super close attention to the beds when we travel. During our last vacation he became obsessed with these and basically became their spokesperson. After he got glassy-eyed describing them to our friends, I just went ahead and bought a couple of sets. It’s possible they’re his favorite thing in the house.

 ** _Star Wars: The Original Trilogy_** **Blu-Ray Set**

His favorite movie series. Ever. I don’t think any other discs have been in the player since Mike got this set.

**Armour Fleece Pants**

Mike lives in these sweatpants. He had an endorsement deal with UA for years and is still really loyal to the brand. He teases me about the number of tights and leggings in my closet, but he’s not far behind me in loungewear.

**Legal Pads**

Okay, so I’ve never even seen him so much as buy a notebook. But Mike has fresh legal pads for days. I think he steals them from the Padres offices. When he was playing, he’d use them while prepping for games and still does sometimes when we talk hitters.

**Supergoop! PLAY Everyday Lotion SPF 50**

Mike steals this from me. I like it because the zinc content isn’t too high, which means it doesn’t leave a white residue on my skin. It’s like black America’s favorite sunblock for that reason. I think Mike likes it because it doesn’t smell too chemically, and he doesn’t have to reapply during the day.

**The Craft Beer Advent Calendar Box**

Another gift from me. This was Mike’s favorite Christmas gift three years ago, and it’s become a tradition since then. He waits for it all year, and does a dramatic unwrapping and tasting of each beer on Instagram. It’s a whole thing that has taken on a new life. Like, our Christmas travel planning includes beer packing/shipping considerations.


End file.
